Dr. John Giggie
Dr. Giggie is Associate Professor of History and African American Studies and Director of the Summersell Center for the Study of the South at the University of Alabama. He is the founder and director of the Alabama Memory project.
Summersell Graduate Fellows
Isabella Garrison (Raleigh, NC, ALM class of 2017) A member of the inaugural Alabama Memory class, Isabella has researched victims in Tuscaloosa County, built the website, and supervised undergraduate researchers.
Margaret Lawson (Madison, MS, ALM class of 2017) Also a member of the inaugural Alabama Memory class, Margaret has been involved in all facets of the project, including website design, researching victims in Tuscaloosa County, supervision of undergraduate researchers, and building research and teaching protocols. She and Dr. Giggie co-taught “History of Us,” the first Black history class taught daily for an entire year in an Alabama public high school.
Jana Venable (Eclectic, AL, ALM class of 2020) Jana began researching lynching victims in Elmore County in spring 2020. She is working with the Elmore County Black History Museum to develop a public memorialization project for the local victims.
Faith Walker (Tuscaloosa, AL, ALM intern class of 2020) Faith acted as the genealogical expert for the project in the summer of 2020. Her work formed the foundation for genealogical methods and work carried through to present research.
Summersell Undergraduate Fellows
Kelsey Bridgeforth (Houston, TX, ALM class of 2020) A senior history major, Kelsey researched victims in Montgomery County in fall 2020 and continued her research in spring 2021 studying the lives of Black women lost to lynching.
Nick Daria (Tuscaloosa, AL) A junior computer science major, Nick researched victims from Bibb County and is currently creating a new research platform for the Alabama Memory class.
John Pace (Auburn, AL, ALM class of 2018) A junior history and economics major, John researched victims from Chilton County in fall 2019 and built a research partnership with the Randall Research Scholars Program.